Microsoft Says Reports About Devkit Plans Were Inaccurate

A number of sites have reported today that Microsoft axed its announced plans to allow indie developers to use retail Xbox One units as developer kits. According to a Microsoft spokesperson, those reports are inaccurate.

We reached out to Microsoft after seeing the stories, and have heard back from the company. "The comments today were inaccurate," a MIcrosoft spokesperson wrote back. "We remain committed to ensuring the best possible solutions for developers and hobbyists to create games for Xbox One. We will share more details at a later date."

The exact nature of the initial report's inaccuracy is still unknown, and Microsoft hasn't clarified whether its commitment to developers specifically includes allowing retail units to be used as devkits. We've requested additional information from Microsoft, and will update this story as necessary.

In July 2013, Microsoft confirmed that approved developers would eventually be able to convert their retail Xbox One consoles to devkits, allowing them to run prerelease code and works in progress. At the time, the company was clear that it wouldn't be coming in time for launch, but that such functionality would be arriving at an unspecified time in the future.

Microsoft has been talking about its plans to court smaller developers for some time now. Back at Gamescom 2013, the company provided additional details about its ID@Xbox program, in which approved indie developers would be given two dev kits at no charge, as well as streamlining the publishing and title update processes.

Our TakeWe'll have to wait and see what's ultimately going on with this story. Microsoft's rebuttal leaves just enough wiggle room to shift away from its earlier plans, but until we hear for certain we can't say one way or the other.